November 4, 2019

Medicine Hat College (MHC) business and visual communications students have joined forces once again to support Teampon, a community group committed to ending period poverty in the region. The goal of Teampon’s annual campaign is to collect over 5,000 pounds of menstruation products for the Medicine Hat and District Food Bank and stock their shelves for an entire year.

Business students were challenged to create a tagline for the collection drive and work with visual communications students who developed a visual campaign. This year’s concept, #NotABLOODYLuxury, sends a clear message about menstruation products being a basic need for women and challenges the community to have a conversation about the subject.

“Having your period is not a luxury or a life choice. It has been a taboo subject for way too long and I think it is time that we freely acknowledge the fact that women have periods and menstruation products are a necessity,” says business student Anushka Sharma. “This project is very powerful as it has the ability to put people out of their comfort zones and openly discuss things they might not be comfortable talking about. It removes the stigma from society and helps support people who do not have the means to buy menstrual products.”

Tara Williams, a business instructor at MHC, first introduced the project in her marketing class four years ago and has watched its success and impact grow.

“The quality of student work and engagement in this project is outstanding,” says Williams. “They want to use their skills to make a real difference. I am so proud of these students for their passion and commitment to this cause and their collective efforts to find a solution. Sometimes youth don’t receive the recognition they deserve and I think it’s important that we acknowledge their contributions to our community.”

Working collaboratively with the visual communications program to find those solutions is a valuable learning experience for all students.

“The visual communications students were passionate about the project from the get-go. Recognizing and using specialist strengths in both programs to address complicated problems results in innovative solutions and opportunities for collaboration in the future,” explains Ian Richmond, graphic design instructor.

“This campaign is enormous to the community and is an incredible opportunity to give back on a level that the students have yet to be a part of. The students clearly understood their responsibility in the contribution to social progress with the realization that many in the community struggle to meet the most basic human needs of menstrual hygiene products.”

To learn more about this campaign and how you can donate, contact Tara Williams at twilliams@mhc.ab.ca or 403.504.2289. The campaign can also be found online under the hashtags #NotABLOODYLuxury and #donationformenstruation or by joining the Teampon Facebook group.